Nick awoke to kisses on his neck. His eyes still closed, he stretched and began to fully awaken. Her body was fully pressed to his as she continued her efforts, the flat tongue lapping up against his neck. 

“Mm, Winny, you–” He froze mid-sentence, as his hand grasped onto, what he could only describe as a furry boob. 

Opening his eyes, Luna’s deep blue eyes mere inches away met his own. Her tongue was lolled out, and her canine smile looked all too pleased with herself. The rest of his room was empty, Nick actually alone in his four-post bed, aside from the interloper. 

Light was emanating through the windows, the prince’s royal chambers meant to simulate the sun outside unless overridden.

Nick groaned, as he let go of her and began scratching between her ears. “I guess I can’t be mad–you deserved a reward for hunting down that messenger, after all. He was alone?”

Luna nodded, and then pointed over to the open door, barked, and her tail began wagging. He saw a pile of bloodied clothes in the distance, with a pile of daggers. Now that he was wide awake, he smelled breakfast cooking.

Nick snorted. “Good job, girl. I guess with your nose and Jasper, it was easy, huh?” He narrowed his eyes on her. “Part of your reward will be me not being mad–I told you not to lick, just how many times? But what do you want for your other part?”

Luna still looked pleased with herself, which made him believe she was quite aware of her limits and what she might be able to get away with. 

She barked and yipped, an odd mumbling that was getting close to sounding like words. But combined with her gesturing to her spear at the door, and making a gesture above them, he understood what she wanted.

Luna wanted to make sure she, Sable and Fang were allowed to enter the tower–and hopefully, the rest of the wolflings.

Nick intended to do that anyway, so he figured he would choose her reward later instead. “You got it, girl–though if you are going to enter the Path of Kings, I want you girls to go in with some of the orcs or priestesses. Let’s go see what the other girls are cookin’, huh? You go ahead, and I’ll be there in a minute.”

Luna bounded out of the bed and grabbed her tribal clothes just from nearby and put them on, Nick once again narrowing her eyes on her as she dashed out of the room on all fours. 

Dutifully ignoring her advances, Nick looked over his old-new room with a sigh as he stood next to the bed. He had spent much of his childhood in this room, and the adjacent study. His parents, and Jasmine had joined him for much of that, raising him into what they hoped would be an excellent prince, and later a king.

He had still been young, so it wasn’t as if he became a well-educated Orion scholar overnight by merging with his past self. However, he was given one of the best educations both parental love and money could buy, with visits from mentors and a supply of various books. 

Between his personal training–both the sword and soul magic, and plenty of time for fun for a child, Earth Nick was more than a little impressed with his eight-year-old Orion self. He now had an excellent high-level overview of how Orion worked, and would no longer need Eirwen or Kaya to explain something like he was five years old.

In some areas thanks to his family’s high level of advancement, he likely even knew much more than they did now. He knew that while he was an intelligent and ambitious child, it was only that. In truth, the focus of his father was instilling Archaen Swordsmanship, and the Path of Kings into Nick.

A Path he might not be able to continue following forever. He had already taken an oath to walk the path of heroes, but he didn’t regret it one bit. 

After all, it was possible to walk down more than one. For many, it was challenging to the point of being nearly impossible, but his father had done so as well. As to what a Path was, he now understood this as well.

It was the Path of their personal Ordeal advancement, which would then also feed into their Ideals and Concepts, and beyond. Odds were, Seraphara eventually followed a path called the Path of the Goddess, or something along these lines–until she became one.

Thus, to follow more than one Path, it required owning and climbing more than one Ordeal and mastering them. There was more to it than just that–owning an Ordeal was not just climbing it, but things like Conflicts and other special events.

Having multiple Ordeals for his personal advancement would become harder and harder as he increased in stratum. Nick thought it would even be a challenge to change the Ordeal’s paths when his people used them. He either needed to pay the price to change it, or capture more Ordeals and shift those instead.

Thankfully, he had a perfect target to take their Ordeal–likely, this Blackthorne walked an evil Path or perhaps was, in the bigger scheme of things, a chump, and didn’t even have one–like Lothar’s Ordeal, which was new and only used as a training ground. 

Nick was sure Lothar had been endeavoring to upgrade it, but was probably waiting for many of his warriors to be ready to hit the second stratum, as well as forming his own Concept.

Heading out of the room in his princely robes, the living room and kitchen were full of activity. Kaya and the wolfling girls were helping Eirwen prepare food and set the table, along with feeding Jerome–though it might be Jasmine, and Jasper. 

Eirwen approached him with a smile, wearing an apron. “Good morning hubby! I see Luna woke you up, just like I asked her to! How are you feeling now?”

Nick gave her a kiss as he lifted her into the air into an embrace, to which she gave a pleased hum. Her body had definitely become a bit more sturdy as a result of the last tempering, and her lovely curly hair had become longer. 

She had it tied up in a ponytail, a big bushy thing at the back of her head at the moment, that once again made him feel she looked cute. 

Putting her down, he couldn’t resist running his hand through her big fluff of hair, finding it to be just as soft as before. 

“Love the new hair. Feeling great now, but I need this food in my belly. Thanks for cookin’, wifey.”

“Hehe, we made a lot! This kitchen has some neat stuff. We can store what’s left over, and just reheat it quickly later.”

He looked over what was already arrayed on the table, and thanked the wolfling girls and Kaya as well for their efforts. There were various cooked meats, but also cut fruit, pancakes, eggs, juice, and what looked like hash browns. A breakfast of champions, once again. 

But he was drawn to Jasper and Jerome resting, off near his side. Nick couldn’t help but be drawn toward Jerome. As he approached, its reptilian eye snapped open, and a grin began forming on its features. 

The drake’s figure was still imposing, its large body like a large, red, komodo dragon.

Nick’s soul magic brushed over the creature’s soul, and did his best to sense the connection between them. After a mere moment, he was sure, but he was still dumbfounded.

“Jasmine?”

The drake stood taller, its shoulders and head nearly the same height as Nick’s. Its tongue flickered out, before nodding. 

Nick gasped, shock gripping him. To some extent, he now understood why Jasmine, in the body of the hobgoblin chieftain, had been unable to speak or communicate properly.

She was a part of his inheritance, his Heritage. A strange being of pure energy, she was in the third stratum when she was soulbound to him. To get his inheritance, he had to properly earn it. And her guidance and full strength would have been considered an unfair advantage.       

As strong as Jasmine had seemed in terms of capability, she was being severely limited and otherwise restricted.

Nick was overcome with emotion, the memories of his young self and his maid filling him. He longed for his faithful servant back at his side, a calm, loving presence from his first childhood.

But there was more. In front of his mother and father, she was like a stuffy version of his own mother. The moment they were alone, she became like the cool and fun babysitter, that at least pretended to love everything they did for fun. 

Looking back as an adult, perhaps it was genuine, but it was easy to look back at it with a more cynical lens. Either way, his mother was perhaps gone forever, but this nostalgic family member still remained.

He hugged the creature’s large head to his chest, Jasmine’s reptilian eyes narrowing in happiness. After spending nearly a whole minute, Kaya and Eirwen watching this reunion play out with smiles, Nick backed off, meeting her reptilian eyes with his own.

Nick frowned in thought. To some extent, he already knew the answer, but he decided to ask anyway. “If I put you in a human-like body, would you be able to speak?”

Jasmine’s eyes showed a little bit of confusion, before he rephrased it, speaking in Archaen. “If body right…can you talk?”

The drake took a moment, before shaking its head no. His suspicions were confirmed. 

Nick’s soul servants were simply too limited, currently. Part of it was that Jasmine’s soul was too powerful, but Nick’s also wasn’t strong enough. Then, another key component was the target body, and their ability to synchronize–the compatibility of the body with the soul.

This was why Nick could restore his Follower’s bodies with their soul–there was a hundred percent compatibility, it was their body, after all. But Jasmine was a being of pure energy, her original body far beyond his current capabilities. This made her both more, and less, compatible with bodies. 

Her odd soul and mind would be able to control the body with a high proficiency, but the mind, or brain and core, would not quite sync up for things like speech or what might be considered sentient thought–she would have difficulty in making plans or goals. His soul magic orders were like a bridge, allowing her to more easily carry out his desires much more directly than spoken word.

So Nick had a few paths, to have himself a good, real conversation with Jasmine, or for her to join in truth as a traveling companion. 

Increasing in stratum and learning more spells and abilities with his class, finding a corpse much closer to her original, or, recreating her body using the Genesis Chamber.

The last item he knew without even looking would be costly, but even with the knowledge he had now, he knew that he was getting the chamber immediately.

Giving his Soulbound servant one more hug and doing the best he could to send his feelings, he joined Kaya and Eirwen at the table, and filled in the details. The wolfling girls joined them as well, Jasmine returning to her rest, though at the exit of the sanctum instead.

Nick checked the time remaining on Trial Closure, finding him to have until around noon the following day before the merger. He had slept from the early evening until mid-morning, recovering from the soul-merging.

Taking another bite of boar bacon and a swig of orange juice, Nick couldn’t help but sigh in relief. He had busted his ass for weeks in that tower, and now he would get a little bit of rest. They could mess with the Genesis Chamber, and he could explore his study–

It was as he had that thought, that an odd chime rung out, causing everyone in the room to freeze, though Jasper and Jasmine both looked to the exit corridor.

Nick was furious, his relaxing time interrupted. He wiped his hands and face off with a napkin, throwing it down onto the table. “Aw, hell nah. If that’s the mayor, I’m gonna double kill his ass!”

Kaya snorted. “What’s with this double killing someone? You were going to double kill that bandit about the belt pack thing, too.”

“Killing them once is just not enough. Besides, they were already going to die, what else was I supposed to threaten him with?”

Nick, Kaya and Eirwen joined to check who the visitors were. As they neared the door, to their surprise, they could actually see who was waiting outside, like a camera’s image was played inside the room. 

Eirwen was shocked as she looked at the image. “It’s Rebecca. And…the mayor of Havendale.”

Nick narrowed his eyes, and held two fingers together in front of him. “He came this close! But if he’s giving Becca a hard time, I’m pulling him inside and judging him. I don’t care who’s watchin’!”

Kaya looked at Nick askance, “How can you say something that’s obviously false, or untrue?”

“Because for one, we’re all able to detect the truth, I cannot lie to you in the first place. Second, I’m just screwing around, and you know that–the fact that it is obviously false matters. Fibbing and exaggeration are also different, if you asked me more directly and made my response important by doing so, I would struggle. Intent matters some, besides.”

Kaya looked thoughtful as Nick pressed a glyph off to the side, opening the door with a hiss.

The mayor looked at Nick’s glowing white hallway with wide eyes, while Rebecca smiled.

“Sorry to bother you, Lord Noblefrost. But Mayor Steinweld had some concerns–”

“N-Not me, the people of Havendale! The inner ring has…substantially better housing than the ruins of this city. Many are wanting to move in, to enjoy the many…comforts.”

Nick tried to look thoughtful, as if mulling it over, but his answer was already firm in his mind. He would shut the Mayor down. “Mayor, the inner ring is to be earned by merit, those involved in climbing the Ordeals or supporting those who do getting first priority. Those interested in getting slots to climb, and their own housing will have to prove themselves in the Adventurers Guild, Dueling Grounds, or Serephara’s Cathedral. The rest will have to make themselves useful in supporting them.”

“A-Adventurers guild? What is that?”

What Nick identified were special buildings associated with the Ordeals. In addition to the Crown Sanctum, an Ordeal could provide significant, upgradeable buildings enhanced by essence within the first ring. 

In the orc’s case, there was already a special fighting grounds where duels could be rewarded with essence from Orion, with various limitations. For the people of Zura, their cathedral would provide boosts and rewards for following their faith. 

Kaya looked a little lost, while Eirwen smiled at Nick from the side. It seemed his sheep wife was at least partially aware of what these buildings were.

Eirwen responded, “The Adventurers Guild is a location where Quests can be posted and given out, Orion’s reward for clearing them enhanced. Orion will even generate them occasionally, shifting or altering essence in the nearby area. You don’t know this, Mayor? Your skills should enhance this building.”

There were a few other options under the Path of Kings, but Nick would go with the simpler, cheaper option for his first special building, for now. Of course, Nick gravitated toward this option because of his MMO experience, wanting to have this special location for his city.

“I…yes, of course, that Adventurers Guild. This building is very useful. Back to the housing, of course, for those with positions of authority…”

Nick nearly laughed out loud–the man was shameless. In truth, the Mayor class was quite useful, but Nick had no intention of letting this Mayor live longer than he needed to. After all, he knew both Zura and Nagduros either had a Mayor or their own version of one, and it was unlikely this Mayor would be useful to Nick any longer.

At the same time, he was concerned about the man trying to flee or do something else stupid, so Nick decided to keep him where he could easily monitor him, and not give him a reason to suspect that his days were numbered.  

He smiled, and pointed over to the house in the distance. “Of course, Mayor. Why don’t you select that house right over there for now? We don’t know exactly how things are going to shift when the three cities combine, but that should be substantial enough for now, yes? As far as upgrading your home, I’m afraid our available essence will be stretched thin for a bit, so we’ll all have to make sacrifices.”

The man looked like he had swallowed a bug. While the inner ring housing was good, it was just a small, single family home. It had indoor plumbing and came with a few niceties, but it was nothing special. 

Odds were, the mayor’s current house was a lot bigger, even if perhaps not as new and well-built, and his home likely lacked indoor plumbing. The mayor had probably wanted to upgrade the house to something far superior, but now it was like he had to accept a downgrade, Nick heading off his request. 

“I…yes, of course. Thank you, Lord Noblefrost! I will let the people of Havendale know about the upcoming…opportunities, and that they should work towards earning your favor. Good day!”

He turned on his heel and began walking away, while Rebecca gave him a confused look. 

“Something about you…has changed. Something about your…speech, is different. I’m also surprised you knew so much about the Ordeal-related buildings already? You must have been studying hard.”

Eirwen reached out, and grabbed Rebecca’s hand. “A lot has happened since you left yesterday! Have you had breakfast yet? Come on in!”

Rebecca blushed and stammered a response, as Eirwen tugged Nick’s follower inside. 

When they got inside, she sat Rebecca down and Nick chuckled, as Eirwen piled food onto her plate. The Archpriestess seemed to be a light eater based on previous interactions, but Winny’s hospitality couldn’t be denied.

Nick finished up his breakfast, Kaya and Eirwen getting details from Rebecca about the people of Havendale, and updating her about the change in Nick’s situation. The wolfling girls wanted to train, so he sent them off with a note to bug Andross for that, for now. They would need to get ready to climb the Ordeal.

It seemed Andross and his wives had visited the bar, and were already the talk of the town, as he competed with and crushed several in arm wrestling–and drinking.

Kaya chuckled. “That guy’s a bit much, huh? He had just drank all night at the party the night before!”

Nick clapped his hands together, getting the girl’s attention. “Alright. Now that our bellies are full, let’s see about activating the second part of my Heritage: the Genesis Chamber.”

Announcement

Remember, Book 1-5 of my other book is out on Amazon!

Amazon - Bonded Summoner

by  JJ Bookerson

Delving dungeons by day, relaxing with cute monster girls at night.

When a God of War barged into his apartment, Jake had no idea what to expect... but it wasn't being forced into a never-ending war against evil invaders, or that the battle would strangely resemble the MMORPG games he loved.

Working hard and building himself up from almost nothing, Jake would need every bit of knowledge and preparation to master his new class of Summoner. Joined by a sly Demoness with an ancient past and a shy Valkyrie hoping to prove herself in battle, they'll find excitement and enjoyment as they level and grow in power.

Will Jake be strong enough to face the challenges of an evil labyrinth, or will he die and be separated from his new family forever, waiting to respawn in the void?

Bonded Summoner Book 1 has already been enjoyed on RoyalRoad and Scribblehub, with over 500,000 views between the two platforms. What are you waiting for?

Contains: LitRPG system, crafting, cultivation, dungeon crawling, dating, and an infinite universe. Author note: As of 11/26, this book has gone through another round of professional editing.